The general problem examined in this study is that of competition versus administration in the determination of the price of wheat.

No description available.

Entertainment Coupons are a popular method of restaurant advertising. These books contain coupons for hundreds of local restaurants and are often sold to consumers as part of a fundraising campaign for a charity. Consumers are likely to use the book in one of two ways: to save money while maintaining their previous frequency of dining out, or to use the savings to increase the number of times that they can dine out with their fixed disposable incomes. Most coupon books are purchased by consumers. Consumers that have purchased a coupon book should be inclined to use coupons from it more frequently than consumers that have received a coupon book for free. Purchased coupon books involve a sunk cost that the consumers may try to recover through the savings the coupons provide. The impact of sunk costs may be reduced for coupon books with charitable ties; however, unless consumers consider the entire purchase price to be a charitable donation, there will still be costs involved in acquiring the coupons. An experiment was designed to test the effects of purchased vs. free coupon books and coupon books with and without charitable ties. Consumers using coupons from the purchased books were more likely to switch restaurants than were consumers that used a coupon from a free coupon book. The experiment showed few other loyalty effects; however this lack of effect may have been caused by the simulated method of implementing loyalty.

This dissertation consists of three essays studying human behavior and contagion phenomenon in networks. The analysis especially focuses on information sharing, trade relationship and pest spread in networks. The first chapter outlines the dissertation by briefly discussing the motivations, methods, and main findings in each of the following chapters. Chapter two examines the information sharing in networks. We develop a heterogenous agents model in which connections between players act as a channel to exchange information. We focus on specialized equilibria, which is based on Nash tatonnement. It is shown that players utilize the signals in the linear form and only specialized equilibria can be stable. We also compare the sequential equilibria and stable equilibria, and it is shown that stable equilibria form a proper subset of the sequential ones, which gives a sharper prediction. The stable equilibria demonstrate star-like graphs, which is similar to the phenomenon "the law of the few" in the literature. Chapter three investigates the trade relationship among players where trade between two players can bring benefits as well as conflict. And if conflict happens, the players coordinate based on received information. We show that the optimal structure of trade networks ranges from complete market to Autarky. Also, we study the optimal timing for trade relationship establishment and the optimal size of organizations when facing scarce members. It is shown that when potential neighbors become more scarce, people care more about the future, or new technology breakthroughs occur more frequently, it is optimal to have more neighbors to back up for the potential technological breakthrough. The last chapter studies the pest spread in the networks. We use a directional and weighted network to study the spread of Tuta absoluta. A robust network-based approach is proposed to model seasonal flow of agricultural produce and examine its role in pest spread. Furthermore, the long-term establishment potential of the pest and its economic impact on the country are assessed. Preliminary analyses indicate that Tuta absoluta will invade most major tomato production regions within a year of introduction and the economic impact of invasion could range from $17-25 million. / Ph. D. / Networks play an important role in the society today, for example, the Internet, Facebook and other social media, cell phones, and communication networks. Networks have undeniable effects on human activity in modern society and this dissertation will focus on three topics: information sharing in networks, trade networks and diffusion in the networks. Information sharing in networks: In the society, individuals have different ability to refine signals, so their strategy about information will be different. In this paper, we assume that there are noisy signals about the true state of the world and individuals have a tradeoff between refining their signals by themselves and connecting to others to receive information. It is shown that players utilize the signals in the linear form and only specialized equilibria can be stable. Furthermore, the stable equilibria demonstrate star-like graphs, which is similar to the phenomenon “the law of the few” in the literature. The structure of trade networks: Trade is ubiquitous in modern society and has undeniable effects on human activity. The trade relationship among players can bring benefits as well as conflict. Facing the advantages and disadvantages of trade, players need to make decisions about who to trade with. We show that the optimal structure of trade networks ranges from complete market to Autarky as economy environment changes. Also, we study the optimal timing for trade relationship establishment and the optimal size of organizations when facing scarce members. It is shown that when potential neighbors become more scarce, people care more about the future, or new technology breakthroughs occur more frequently, it is optimal to have more neighbors to back up for the potential technological breakthrough. Diffusion in networks: Diffusions like information, diseases, rumor are usually through the network in the society. We study the pest spread Nepal in the networks. Based on road networks and trade patterns, we model the flow networks of the pest spread. Based on the flow network, the long-term establishment potential of the pest and its economic impact on the country are assessed. Preliminary analyses indicate that Tuta absoluta will invade most major tomato production regions within a year of introduction and the economic impact of invasion could range from $17-25 million.

No / This paper evaluates the impact of openness on growth in different country groups using a panel of 79 countries over the period 1970-98. It distinguishes itself from many existing studies in three aspects: Firstly, both trade and FDI are included as measures of openness. Secondly, countries are classified into high-, middle- and low-income groups to compare the roles of trade and FDI in these groups. Thirdly, the possible problems of endogeneity and multicollinearity of trade and FDI are carefully dealt with in a panel data setting. The main findings are as follows. Total trade has a general positive impact on growth in all country groups, although the impact from imports is not significant in high-income countries. FDI has a positive impact on growth in high- and middle-income countries, but not in low-income countries. With the existing absorptive capabilities, low-income countries can benefit from both exports and imports, but not from FDI. These findings suggest that trade and FDI affect growth through different channels and under different conditions. The paper also discusses important policy implications.

No / 33rd International Labour Process Conference, Athens, Greece

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Yes / This paper reflects on trade institutions across West Africa from the Empirehood to the present day. We found that regional trade institutions were more standardised across West Africa before the current countries gained their independence. We argue that reflection on past trade institutions could provide important guidance for policy makers currently involved in deepening the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). Our review of the literature suggests that the Empirehood was an era with more standardised trade institutions across the region relative to the current ones. Societal norms and political consensus such as the ‘Mande charter’ and the coming of Islam created a discipline that enhanced confidence in the ability to trade, which was facilitated by common trade institutions such as convertible common currencies and letters of credit. During the colonial era, West African common currencies were also established to facilitate exchange. Historical changes in governance resulted in the loss of some facets of well-functioning trade institutions. This paper argues that historical context can provide policy makers with the confidence that current institutional barriers to trade can be addressed. ECOWAS members could reflect on historical good practices if they are to accelerate the integration process and to realise the full potential of regional trade.

Boston University. University Professors Program Senior theses. / PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you. / 2999-01-01

Thesis (LLM)--University of Stellenbosch, 2003. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This dissertation deals with restraints in post-employment cases in England, South Africa and Germany. The attempt was made to compare the restraint of trade doctrine that was developed in England and is still used in the common law countries, on one the hand, and the German restraint of trade rules on the other. Therefore the development of the restraint of trade doctrine in England is described, as well as the modifications of the restraint of trade doctrine in South Africa. Also it is given an overview of the German restraint of trade rules. As far as the English and South African law is concerned, the historical developments and applicable principles of the restraint of trade doctrine are emphasised, whereas the main aim in the German part is to give an overview about the codified restraint of trade rules. While comparing the common law doctrine and the German restraint of trade law it is emphasised that in the common law countries the reasonableness and public interest plays an important role, whereas in German restraint of trade law, on the other hand, the payment of compensation is an important matter. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: geen opsomming